Investigators at University of Minnesota Detail Findings in Health and Medicine (Roots Community Birth Center: a Culturally-centered Care Model for Improving Value and Equity In Childbirth)

2020 MAY 27 (NewsRx) -- By a News Reporter-Staff News Editor at Insurance Daily News -- Current study results on Health and Medicine have been published. According to news reporting originating from Minneapolis, Minnesota, by NewsRx correspondents, research stated, “Pernicious racial disparities in birth outcomes in the United States have their roots in structural racism-the systematic allocation of opportunities and resources based on race. These inequities, caused by systemic factors which contribute to lower quality of care, negatively impact the lives of Blacks/African Americans.”

Financial support for this research came from Robert Wood Johnson Foundation Interdisciplinary Research Leaders program.

Our news editors obtained a quote from the research from the University of Minnesota, “The development of new maternity care models hold potential to reduce disparities and costs by focusing on the root cause of racism. Roots Community Birth Center is an African American-owned, midwife-led freestanding birth center in North Minneapolis. Roots provides a culturally-centered model of care during pregnancy, childbirth, and the postpartum period. The culturally-centered care model utilized by Roots Community Birth Center offers culturally-centered care that is community based, accepts Medicaid beneficiaries, and provides prenatal and postpartum visits that are customized to the needs of the birthing individual. Like other institutions, this birth center faces the financial challenges associated with maternity care payment models and inadequate Medicaid reimbursement, challenges that directly interfere with the center’s culturally-centered care model which advocates for longer prenatal visits and close follow-up postpartum. The birth center model of care has proven effective; over the last four years Roots has had 284 families with zero preterm births.”

According to the news editors, the research concluded: “The culturally-centered care model used by Roots is not currently well-supported by maternity care payment models that were designed in large part to reflect typical care provided by obstetricians and hospitals.”

For more information on this research see: Roots Community Birth Center: a Culturally-centered Care Model for Improving Value and Equity In Childbirth. Healthcare, 2020;8(1):. Healthcare can be contacted at: Elsevier, Radarweg 29, 1043 Nx Amsterdam, Netherlands.

The news editors report that additional information may be obtained by contacting R.R. Hardeman, University of Minnesota, School of Public Health, Division of Health Policy and Management, Minneapolis, MN 55455, United States. Additional authors for this research include J. Karbeah, K.B. Kozhimannil and J. Almanza.

The direct object identifier (DOI) for that additional information is: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.hjdsi.2019.100367. This DOI is a link to an online electronic document that is either free or for purchase, and can be your direct source for a journal article and its citation.

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